The Gifted
by CriedOut911
Summary: Some people are gifted with the art of bending. Some people are not. Does that make them better than others? It's how we hone our abilities and improve our skills. That's what makes us truly gifted.
1. A Sudden Reccurence

**I never would've thought about conjuring a fanfiction story about ATLA. I remember I used to get all excited every time it came on, no matter what time of the day. I was a go-hard in simplest terms. I don't know what got me so riled up about it, but who can really forget a show like Avatar?**

**Disclaimer: Avatar: The Last Airbender is Michael and Bryan's toy. I'm just playing with it.**

* * *

_**The Childhood Arc**_

_**Chapter 1: A Sudden Recurrence**_

_**(**__**突然間復發**__**)**_

"_No! She is our daughter! __**We**__ get to choose if she stays here or not!"_

"_Hake, Honey, at least listen to what they have to-"_

"_NO! I am not letting them take my only child"_

_A gnarled hand rose and the outbursts were subdued. The protracted silence in the room raised the already built up tension. The intertwined hands of husband and wife seemed to tighten as stillness lay. _

"_It is their child. They should do what they please"_

"Hake"

_It was not like the voice was anonymous. The soft timbre that the voice held was indeed his wife's, which confused the man. Through peripheral slits he gazed at his wife and it was lucid that his wife did not verbalize or even utter a word, however her mellifluous voice chimed throughout the room. Hake did not want to deem himself insane, but as his lime irises shifted from person to person in the room, he began to contradict himself. Words structured and framed their mouths to iterate, but no source of sound, not even an intonation was audible._

"DADDY!"

A meager jolt mixed in with a pant brought Hake back from his soulless reverie. With a harsh gulp as if his throat was dehydrated, he gradually searched the area. Everything was contently banal. His swords were in their sheath, his wardrobe stood in its commonplace, no elderly people dressed in outlandish robes or anything.

"Daddy! You're finally awake!"

Hake felt a lightweight encircle around his neck, red momentarily consuming his vision. He looked at the two culprits who stirred him from his slumber. His wife, Kuna, and his daughter, Sana, stared at him, jaunty looks plastered on their faces as if the sun had woken them up personally. Hake released a chuckle as he patted his green-eyed wonder. He should have known it was his daughter's discordant bellow echoing in his head. She did, after all, adopt his boisterous personality.

"Get up! Get up Daddy! You said we were going to do more training today!" The toddler leaped off him in a somewhat refined manner. "Slow down sweety. You and your father can go outside and play after breakfast" Kuna said with a subtle sweep of her ruby locks. Hake watched as his daughter's head bobbed in understanding, even though a miniscule of pout was shown. Sana scurried out the room, her red hair swishing behind her with each step. Hake watched as the flare of her sleeve vanish behind the door before turning to his wife.

Kuna stood tall, firm, but yet meek at the same time. With a slow stride, long hair trailing, she perched her body right next to him. The expression on her face was inconceivable; this was the enigma that he fell for. The stringy long bangs that framed her face, her creamy paste skin, the lilac reflected in her eyes, Hake was the luckiest guy in the world. How did he accomplish such a feat? How did he manage to have such splendor? She sensually rubbed his cheek, pursing her lips together. Though obscurity was there, Hake discerned that his wife had a hint…no not even a hint, a good recognition that his mind was in an encumbered void. He found it strange, strange that his subconscious would idly and nonchalantly view a past event that enflamed the ember of his wake. It was not a recurring image or flashback; ever since that day, Hake wanted to exonerate it from his memory, confide it deep into the depths of his core—but yet it just had to be today that he woke up, the dream unlocking the gate that secured this memory. Hake knew the unsuccessfulness of compensating the flashback with the scrutiny of the already-known beauty that Kuna contained; he was not getting himself anywhere.

"I had a dream…about that day" Even though there was a slight pause, he voiced it in his typical, loud, sturdy voice. He observed Kuna's expression again. It was still as inexplicable as it could get, but her eyebrows did furrow. She inched closer to him and he watched as some of her red threads poured down from her shoulder blades. Her face then scrunched up as if she tasted something bitter, her eyes became half-lidded and a frown was set on her face.

"It can't be a coincidence" Kuna said quietly. "I had the same dream" Hake's eyes broadened. It was not just a coincidence, now that they both concluded. They had both dreamt the same event that had not plagued their minds since the day they marched out that place. He leaned in closer, disbelief yanking him forward on proverbial puppet strings. The abruptness of the movement all but forced his nose into Kuna's hair, but he found himself not paying much attention to the comfort it brought him –though her hair did carry the scent of strawberries—and instead appraising her with a mixture of confusion and concern.

This was in no means being psychic, but the sheer consideration that a simple flashback like this could forebode an upcoming in the near future put Hake and Kuna in a haze. For that, and everything else, Hake drew his arms around Kuna's waist and pulled her side close to his.

Too think that 6 years had passed already…Sana was six years old now.

* * *

A set of kicks soared through the air, soft grunts accompanying it. Droplets of sweat glided down her red brows. She remembered verbatim on what her father said.

_When practicing the arts of Taijiquan one must be intense with their strikes yet fluid with their movements_

What did that even mean, fluid? She had a weird feeling that it meant pee. Her dad wanted her to be pee? The grossness of the latter shivered her entire body in disgust, throwing off her concentration for a second. A second was all that was needed before Sana's sight was of the sky instead of the peach coated wall of the house. Her hair spilt beneath her as she scrunched in frustration. Taijiquan was gradually reaching a more difficult level each month and the slow pacing was agonizing.

The hard techniques were her forte. She was in her element whenever she and her father rehearsed those practices to refresh. Flexibility was an innate gift thanks to her genes and her young form. Hake already construed that Sana was the type of fighter that hurled ferocious attacks and fast movements which was mandatory to complete hard techniques. Soft techniques were a whole new different topic. In soft techniques, the combatant is required to be supple and gentle with a leisured pace. This style was an ultimate foil to Sana. She was on the other side of the spectrum, fierce and rough. At the right moment when she needed it, the wind roused a yielding breeze, cooling the sweat on her temples.

"Tired already?"

Sana rose from the ground to see Hake approaching her, a small smile dancing on his lips. With incentive resurged in her, the six year old boldly stood up. "No way!" She claimed. "I'm just getting started!" She fell into a stance—her father recognizing it was the Sun style—and started performing the maneuvers. Recognizing a few minor errors, Hake walked towards his daughter, strapping his burly arms over her. "When doing the Sun Style of Taijiquan, one foot has to proceed while the other foot follows that foot. Seeing that you're dominant with your right, allow that foot to guide" Redirecting her footwork, Sana allocated her right foot to advance, effortlessly allowing her left to follow

"Good. Just remember that the Sun Style is a soft technique, not hard. Your movements have to be smooth, soft and fluid"

Sana paused at the last word while the expression of repulsion stuck onto her face at the elusive word. "Please Daddy! Don't make me be like pee! I don't wanna do this if I have to be pee!" She whined frantically. Hake's face bore utter bafflement until it quickly distorted into a joyful one. He released a loud mirth. This puzzled Sana as she just watched her father literally die of laughter. Regaining control of his little period of laughter, Hake patted Sana's head. "No, no! In this sense, fluid means smooth and graceful in a way that seems relaxed" Hake said formidably.

Cramming such a challenging word in a brain of a six year old was rather nonsensical, clearly shown by the blank "lost in space" stare Sana was bearing. Hake had forgotten he was telling this to four year old little girl. Hake let out another humorous laughter, clutching his gut while trying to contain himself. Sana's mouth pulled down into a pout. "Daddy! Stop!" She whined. The onslaught of laughter still continued. "Stop laughing at me!" Sana came up sputtering, flapping her arms like an agitated pigeon.

Hake felt himself being thrust back by a wayward force, his jollity wiped and replaced with surprise. The force felt like a strong **wind **current that the air suddenly whistled, pushing him with might that pillared it. He tumbled back in a gawky fashion, landing on his rear and skidding back a few inches.

"Daddy!" She ambled her way towards her father. Hake's lips turned dry along with his throat that would not juggle any words. He didn't know whether if his lips became arid due to the sudden current or pure unadulterated shock. Hake fully turned his head to scrutinize his daughter. She was pulling on his sleeve, her face filled with worry and cheeks rosy as her hair.

He wished, oh how he wished he could dismiss that explosion of wind as sporadic behavior of the weather, but the air was stagnant the whole time. The current was also strong and swift, it wouldn't happen by chance. The primary point that put Hake at edge was that it appeared simultaneously when Sana flailed her arms. His breathe dwindle into small hitches, his eyes widening at the very acknowledgement of the reason behind this, the reason he couldn't accept, the reason he wouldn't accept.

"Training is over for today" Hake spoke in a mild tone. "Come on" Sana's brows furrowed in confusion. "Huh? Why?" Hake slipped a hand through his black tresses and chuckled, albeit ruefully. "Daddy forgot that he had a special client coming here today to pick up his weapon and Daddy here is not quite done with it. I have to finish it before he comes or I'm going to lose a customer" Even though it was easy to lie to young children; he frowned when he noticed his daughter's head drop at the weight of gloom.

"Don't worry. We'll definitely practice some more on your soft techniques. I want to move you to Zi Ran Men by the end of this month." With a silent nod, Hake hauled her up and carried her back into the house

* * *

After the full synopsis of what occurred today, Kuna came to an explicit conclusion.

"We have to take her back there"

"What!?" Hake cried incredulously. That was the one option he wanted to avoid. For all the years that were spent avoiding the place, it was all too sudden. Hake had believed that he and Kuna had share contempt towards those people ever since they proposed the idea of keeping their daughter; trying to elucidate to them asinine reasons for why they should yield their daughter to them. He kept his widen frantic expression.

"Think about it Hake. The dream we had, the incident today, we can't just pass it off as nothing" Kuna said tersely. After a few seconds of floating silence, she continued. "What if she is what they say?"

Hake bit his lip in frustration. Of course he knew the repercussions if Sana did have that revered title—never seeing his daughter again—and the embers of his flames started to fume. He remembered the defiant look he detained up against an esteemed elder of their kind. Hake didn't care. Everyone in Yu Dao that knew Hake knew he was obstinate as a bull and is unwavering from any goal he sets. He strutted out of that place; his family weaved in his arms, prideful that he fought a person with higher status. Everything would be trite if they went back; the loss of pride, his daughter and being a father.

"We have to accept the fact that…Sana is an airbender" Kuna muttered.

It was going to take more than a mere acceptance for Hake. An eerie feeling gurgled in his stomach. How could his daughter be an airbender? He wasn't…Hake put that guilty thought aside. He would've thought that he caught recognition or any signs throughout the years. Now that Hake sincerely thought about it, he probably overlooked or dismissed any hints because..he just didn't want to accept it. However, today was a full wake-up call.

"There has to be another way…" Hake started tentatively. It was such a fault in Hake's personality, Kuna was surprised, but she immediately shook it off. Her face became morose again. She chided herself, asking herself why she even stated such a possibility. She quickly answered that; it was the only possibility. Her child was blessed with the art of airbending; why wasn't she jovial? Happy? Proud? She did like bending and found it useful, if anyone was lucky to be born with it. Unlike her thick-headed husband, she did observe some signs that would make her climb the ladder to this conclusion. Hope and ignorance, in which she berated herself from letting those two cover the truth, made her consider otherwise; hope that Hake had this settled and ignorance just because she wanted a life of normalcy.

Covering a hand over his right hand, Kuna spoke, "There's no other way. We have to take her to the Air Temple first thing tomorrow morning. Hake, Please" He wanted to snap, but as he looked into the begging beauty's eyes, he had to succumb. "Fine" He acquiesced.

"Do you remember the way?" Hake sighed desolately.

"Of course I do…I was born there"

* * *

Sana, as young as she was, could tell that her parents were behaving quite strangely.

When the sun was just peeking over the horizon, they woke her up, haste in their movements. She didn't even have the time to wipe the sand out of her eyes. Before she knew it she was clad in clothes, riding in a caravan that was packed with essentials. She sat between her Mom and Dad, resting on her Mother's pillow-like thighs. Unnerving silence permeated the caravan and even though Sana was feigning sleep, the silence that ensued was unsettling her. She at least expected her father to shatter it, but as she locked onto her father's stoic expression, she didn't expect it anytime soon. Sana nuzzled more into the material of Kuna's dress; her mother smelt like strawberries. Sana felt her mother tuck in back some of the strands from her bangs that unraveled from the left swipe of her hair.

"How long did it take to get there last time?" Her mother asked rather meekly. Hake knitted his eyebrows together and stifled a sigh. "It's always a three day journey from here. This is why I want a personal sky bison. We would get there like in ten minutes" Hake ended in a playful sort before he remembered the atmosphere right now was staid. He did, however, hear a muffled snicker from Kuna's direction and knew his joking hadn't gone totally lost on her. The mention of a flying creature intrigued the six years old, seeing in how she shot up from her mother's lap to barrel herself in her father's face.

"Sky Bison!? That means it can fly right!? I wanna see one!" Sana's sudden vivacious energy spiked a pang in Hake. His daughter had no knowledge of the reason behind this abrupt voyage, the possibilities that could occur once they get there.

However, with Sana's energy illuminating the caravan—the fact that it always did— every corner and crevice of bleak emotions that was waiting to resurface were erased. A grin sneaked its way onto Hake's lips. "The place in where we're going has loads of them! They can fly and go way faster than this slow caravan" At the moment, that was what he wanted to see, his wife and child smiling at him, carefree.

"Mommy, Daddy, Where are we going?"

A tense feeling wrapped his body loosely, but nevertheless he kept his grin intact.

"We're going to see my uncle."'

* * *

Time had seemed to shift into high gear during the trek. Three days had already arrived and pass and Sana was not surprisingly restless, even though the majority of her time was wasted in riding in a small, yet dainty caravan. The ride on the vessel was quite short yet enjoyable. The vessel was copious and the deck spanned out nicely; Hake employed it for the continuation of Sana's training. The people who occupied the cruiser were courteous and generous as well. Several would engross their time into playing games with Sana, telling her imaginative tales and myths from each nation, or teaching her about the sea creatures she spotted lapping up and down in the ocean.

When it was finally time to dismount, a neurotic feeling stroked Hake's body, his body responding to the feel by the tingling of his hands. It was just a mile before they reached their destination and with the knowledge of that, he unconsciously intertwined his hands with the red-headed woman next to him. Kuna didn't tear her gaze ahead but she clenched his hand tightly to be made known the feeling was mutual. With each simple step, anticipation grew higher and higher; the austere emotion resurfaced.

"Daddy! Is that a sky bison!?"

Hake raised his head. A tower made out of worn out clay bricks was positioned, its form splitting the sky. A few skinny patches of moss filled the rim of the bricks but the tower didn't depart from its beauty. There were a couple of small windows that were clearly carved and the door was surprisingly unadorned; it was a plain wooden door.

A sky bison was resting a few feet away from the tower, munching on some fruits. Sana dashed towards the creature. A few seconds passed before Hake heard the flying bison's grumble and Sana's giggles. Slobber dripping off of her told him that the bison had bathed her affectionately with a giant lick. "Eew!"The child stuck her tongue out, trying to wipe the slobber from her face. There was no sense of surprise in Hake. The sky bison species have always been the munificent type; it was in their nature.

"Cute kid" A voice tittered.

Hake and Kuna landed their gazes on a person who was coolly stepping out of the tower. He was bald but had a blue arrow tattoo running down the scope of his head and halting in the middle of his forehead. It wasn't only his head, but his hands as well were printedwith blue arrows.

_Sign of a master_.

He was dressed in robes that were spacious and seemed to easily flutter in the wind with bright dual colors of orange and yellow with a tint of red. The young monk-like guy came forwards and with a swift-handshake, he spoke. "Hello travelers. I'm Cato, The Keeper of the Entrance of the Southern Air Temple. No one can go up or down without going through me."

Kuna looked at him bemusedly. "Don't you me in or out?" Cato let out a small chortle and gestured to the sky bison. "You see, since the Southern Air Temple is located in the center of the Patola Mountain Range and these mountains are quite impossible to climb, the only way to get to it is by a sky bison. That's why we have Yamchi over here" Sana was still playing with the bison known as Yamchi. The creature didn't seem to mind at all. "May I ask why you are here?" Hake, for an unknown reason, felt irritation by the harmless question. Even though the simpleton monk seemed trustworthy, they were not going to reveal everything on the platter.

"We're just taking our daughter to see my uncle. I'm the nephew of Gyasto" At least that was half of the truth. Surprise was printed all over his face. His mouth parted but then gradually widened in a flabbergasted way that Hake reacted with a raise of an eyebrow.

"Are you the son of Ozu or Shen?!"

"The first and only child of Shen. Ozu was my uncle. Look, I don't mean to be rude, but…"

Cato got the message of slight exasperation flowing from Hake and sheepishly scratched his cheek in a discomfit manner. "I'm sorry, right this way" With Sana already mounted on top of the sky bison, Hake and Kuna climbed on its ladder of fur and perched themselves on each side of her. Cato eyed Hake with a slight confused and suspicious gaze before gaily using his airbending to leap up on Yamchi; shouts of amazement came from Sana. "Ok let's go boy!" With a grumble, Yamchi levitated in the air, rising above the tall mountains whose peaks mingled with the clouds in an instant and with a whip of the reins, flew off in the distance.

* * *

The temple was the definition of massive. Perched on a high mountain top, tall, bluish-green, spire towers reached for the sky in imitation of the sharp peaks of the surrounding mountains. Snow-covered terraces and graceful bridges; platforms and tiered rooms rose majestically from its base, along a serpentine road and right up to the top, which was crowned by a tall, round, tower. This place was so incredibly beautiful, so inaccessible, so aesthetic to a point that it seemed impossible that anything deprecating could mar its serene harmony. There was a landing platform at the base of the temple and—oddly insisted by Cato— they took the long, winding road up to the main buildings on foot. Sana ran ahead excitedly, pointing out the different buildings whilst asking questions. Her excitement was infectious; Hake and Kuna was becoming just as eager as she was with every step, even though they dreaded even stepping foot in the temple.

_This place is always beautiful _

Time had unaffected this place, Hake thought as he walked through the throng of bald monks. Most if not all of the men air nomad population were bald, Hake was already half expecting them to look.

And they did.

The children indulged in recreational activities had focused their attention onto them. They were garnering stares from every monk that passed by; Hake was hoping for any quirky distraction to quench the anxiety. A film of memories initiated in his mind only for him to repress the imagery that would have colored his eyes. He mentally annexed another reason on why he quickly wanted to get out of here. Under the watchful eyes, Sana bit her lip while entangling her hand with Kuna's. She had surveyed that not even a single girl occupied the place. It was boys amongst boys amongst boys. Sana discreetly stuck out her tongue. There were never this many boys back in Yu Dao. Sana shifted her eyes, discomfort sprawled on her face.

"Well here we are, The Council Room. You're not really allowed in here, but…"

"I know, but it's urgent" Hake said, his clear voice cutting through Cato's sentence. Cato glanced back at him, suspicion prime in his eyes. Hake captured the unsteady look that the young monk graced upon him and furrowed his eyebrows. "Are you really Monk Gyatso's nephew?" Before Hake could spring a retort heated by his impatience, Kuna sleekly slithered into the conversation.

"I assure you, he is what he says. What would we gain by lying?" Cato prodded at his hairless chin in thought before submitting to her subtle words. "Nothing, I guess." With a quick raise of his arms, wind whipped his hands in a forceful motion, surprising Kuna and Sana, but Hake minutely remained still. The tube concreted on the door vacuumed up the wind. The wind trekked through unique devices and mechanisms before the click sound resonated their eardrums. The door then finally side-stepped, allowing them to step through its gaping hole. Shackles began to rattle in his Hake's head as his feet proceeded to walk on the orange flushed vinyl floor, his eyes taken in the room. The room, of course, was scattered in primary colors, but the room had a settling aura; this did not suppress the memory from six years back. It was so weird, Hake pointed out in his head, that Kuna and him placed themselves in the exact same spot they were in six years ago. The only thing was that Sana was standing instead of cuddling into the crescent of Kuna's arms.

"Sorry for intruding, but this man and his family are here and wish to speak with you." Cato bowed, his sleeves meeting together and his eyes closed. Seated in their respective pillowed seats, the form of their legs crossed underneath their robes, the old men squinted at the comers and relaxed. Just like Cato, blue arrows cloaked each of the men on their skin and bald head.

"He says he is your nephew, Monk Gyatso"

Hake made a point of not letting his gaze linger on the rest of the High Monks, instead focusing his eyes straightforward to look at his uncle. Sana tracked her father's eyes to the elderly man with a placid smile embellished on his face, augmenting his creases. His wear duplicated the other aged men and his string beaded necklace bared a simple heraldic sign of the Air Nomads. His arch-morphed white mustache stirred tiny giggles from her, just for childish reasons of how it looked funny. He waved a hand that indicated to come closer, rather than stand at the comfortable ten foot distance they preferred to maintain. Cato furtively exited, not an utter of a word.

"Long time no see, my young nephew, Kuna" Gyatso spoke affably

"Same with you, uncle" Hake and Kuna bobbed heads in mutual acquiescence. Gyatso walked a few steps closer. "Why don't you ever come and visit?" Hake breathed out a harsh chuckle that erupt his throat. "Well the last time I 'visited', you guys tried to take my only child away from me" A light tone coated on his words didn't fool anybody. Bitterness was prominent in his jibe; Gyatso could already taste that astringent taste of resentment that Hake was feeding him. It already happened and it just happened—not even a minute passed by.

At the mention of said topic, Gyatso drifted his eyes to the short redhead glued to Kuna's hip. Sana was twisting her head, admiring the chamber, unmindful of the cherished stare her grand-uncle bared on her. He took her in, noticing the wholesome growth that she clearly went through—after all she was only a baby the last time he saw her—smiling at her fleshy cheeks and the way she marveled at the simplest things in the room.

She inherited her mother's hair color—the shade of Kuna's hair always interested him—but yet stored the grass green color in her eyes like his nephew; like his little brother.

With a rueful nod, Gyatso spoke "Let's not linger on the past and move ahead in the future. Now what brings you here, dear nephew" Hake and Kuna exchanged glances and with a helpless nod from Kuna's part, Hake commenced. "My daughter…your grand-niece" Hake paused—whether it was deliberate or not remained unknown to him—and stared at Gyatso before going on.

"She's an airbender"

A few moments of silence fluttered; silence flowed in with anxiety. Hake gulped the building saliva that started to pool in his mouth while watching his uncle and the rest of the other members mumble amongst themselves. The whispers were audible, yet no words resounded; He and also Kuna knew that the judgment would evoke a grievance at their part, but they already knew the moment their foot stepped on the concrete stairs outside their house, already knew the moment Sana started playing with the air around her; they already knew from the substantial dream they had. That is what made it so hard.

"Why are we even discussing this? It's obvious we have to take the child to train her in our ways!" A voice blurted out. Hake kissed his teeth in annoyance at the all too familiar screech from Monk Tashi. With a face mirroring a raisin, he had the common puckered lips that old people had as if they ate something sour. With bushy white eyebrows, Tashi gazed down at Sana and instinctively Kuna drew Sana closer to her. The girl was a little startled by her mother's action, but did not hesitate to surround her mother's hip with her arms.

Even though Tashi was ingenuous about it, he was right. It was a fact that this time around they had to give up their daughter. The cold stone slab of realization had already hit him as he thought grudgingly that everything they said that he thought was nonsense was in matter of fact true. Hake stared at Gyatso, noticing his forlorn expression that took over his countenance, noticing his brown eyes silently agreeing with the insensitive prune at the end of the row. Hake bit his lip in frustration, clenching and unclenching his fists. He wanted at least his uncle to refute the notion, like he had done six years ago, but again it all came down to the emotional fact;

They knew.

"How?" He questioned, his voice induced to soft but indignant sound. Monk Pasang, who was the youngest out of all the elders, chose to spoke. "Even though you may not be able to air bend, that does not stop you from passing it on. You were born to airbenders, you have their blood coursing through your veins. You passed it on to your child" Such a simple explanation, but yet it put Hake in a haze.

Throughout the whole journey as he observed his daughter, that one interrogative word has squeezed itself to his mind. Now that he finally voiced it and got his answer, it's been him the whole time. The unusual thought of this was that deep down in the yawning part of his mind a knowing feeling reflected that it was him who had gifted yet cursed the child simultaneously.

"I will speak to my nephew outside" Monk Tashi had brusquely protested, but the other monks had hushed him, allowing them to calmly walk out.

* * *

This scenario played out differently, Hake thought.

_Way_ differently.

Six years ago, they were adamant in keeping Sana, refusal was hard to accept, but now, even though they still do agree to take her away, it seemed…

Hake didn't know what to think.

Now here he was, with his family, silently enraptured by a tree prolific with peaches that they stood underneath. The spot where Gyatso chose was near perfect; it was distance far from the crowd, a content place for Kuna and him since the "welcome" they received from the habitants left them quite uneasy. Though enthralled by the grass that licked their shoes and the tree that shaded them, the situation was too serious for them to appreciate the physical features that nature provided—or the nostalgia that Hake was forced to go in. The breeze provided a sound for the empty silence that gathered.

Gyatso turned to them, his robe brushing the green blades. "Fruit anyone?" He asked. It was an attempt to evaporate the dense mood that seemed to linger from the council room. Hake didn't answer him which earned him a glare from his wife. "Thank you Gyatso. Sana and I will have some" She responded with a genial smile. Easily moving his left hand, the tree bristled, making a soft faint rattle. Suddenly three round peaches dropped into his right palm. "These peaches are sweet. I used them to make my peach cobblers" Gyatso added with a chuckle. He handed the fruits to them and kept one for himself. Sana could already smell the sweet aroma that dwelled within the fruit and biting in to it made it even more satisfying. The juice bloomed into her mouth and soaked it with its flavor; Sana grinned.

"You're right! They are sweet Uncle Gyatso!"

Hake's ears perked up, more specifically on the name that happily came from Sana's mouth. He looked at her, saw the smile she had for Gyatso, him patting her on the head; they've only met for a few minutes and already they started to bond. A small smile tucked itself into Hake's features at the warm moment that seemed indestructible, but yet the crux of the matter wasn't squashed yet. They had to deal with it.

"Uncle" Hake called. Gyatso turned his attention to Hake. Grasping Kuna's hand and rubbing it, lilac gazed into lime, lime gazed into lilac and a mutual agreement was made.

"She can stay here…"

Hake took a gulp of breath as if those few words depleted his oxygen. Gyatso gave a wrinkled smile. "Hake…" "BUT!" He interjected, regaining his forceful voice. "I want her under your care and your care alone. Make sure she gets everything she needs and train her well." It was weird hearing himself say this, but it was once in a while that he had to be practical then sticking to his rather idealistic tendencies. There was no one else to aid her in airbending.

"Oh and one more condition, we get to visit her at least once every week. I don't want my little girl to forget about us and I also don't want her to forget about her training, right sweetie?"

A loud hiccup was the response; a hiccup that trembled with light sobs and whistled sniffles that broke the neutral atmosphere. Both Hake and Kuna eyes widened as they watched their daughter rub her eyes, the reason for doing so failing as the salty stream trickled down her rosy cheeks. Snot drizzled down her nose shamelessly, her body squirming around.

"Da-da –daddy!? You a-and M-m-mommy are going t-to l-l-l-l-leave m-m-m-me!? J-j-just b-b-b-b-because…" The rest fell to broken whimpers and coughs. Hake was never known as a sentimental man; his main premise in life was to suck it up if things went bad, but as his daughter stood in front of him crying of Kuna and his pre-determined absence, it felt as if they were

_Abandoning her. No, no , no, no, no,_

Hake and Kuna gathered their weeping daughter in an embrace, an embrace that spoke the words of how much love they have for her, how much they'll miss her, how much they _didn't_ want to do this, but at the end of the day, common sense and reality went hand in hand.

"You're going to be staying with your grand-uncle for a while, honey. You know the reason why" Kuna cooed. Sana sadly nodded her head. She wasn't oblivious or stupid. She listened to everything. It was because she was an airbender, like her grand-uncle, like the old men in the room, just like everyone else here.

To Sana it was cool to obtain power like this, but to have it with a cost like this?

She bit her lip as she felt her cheeks becoming itchy from the tears that perpetually flowed down. Hearing the sobs, the heart-filled sobs that escaped their daughter's mouth made tears prick in the lids of their eyes as well. Hake took a deep shaky breath. "Don't worry sweetie. Your mom and I will come up and visit every week. You won't even notice we're gone" Pulling her into another warm, loving embrace, all of them closed their eyes to relish in the warmth that was soon about to lose its keep. Sana's sobs dwindled into muffled ones; she tried to catch any remainder of her tears, not wanting to soak her mother's dress nor her father's jacket any further. "Remember be careful" Hake said warily

"Be good" Kuna inputted

"Listen to your grand-uncle"

"Eat right and bathe properly"

"Train!"

"Make friends"

"Not too many though"

"Hake!"

"I'm just saying!"

"Sleep. Don't stay up too late"

"If anyone bothers you, teach them a lesson!"

"Ha-ke…!"

"It's called defending yourself Kuna! Why else do you think I teach her those moves?"

"…..Just have fun sweetie"

"And be safe!"

Even though Sana only halfway soaked up what her parents were saying, she got the gist of it. She bobbed her head in understanding. "Don't worry Mommy, Daddy. I'll be a good girl!" Hake patted her on the head. "I know you will" It seemed the melancholic and serious mood dissipated if not by the exchange of smiles between parents or Gyatso's grin at the tender moment. "Hey Uncle" Gyatso looked at Hake, who seem rather content, not really satisfied, but content; relief had soothed him.

"Hey Uncle" Hake repeated. "I know she's not really supposed to stay on the Southern side, but I want her to stay with you"

_That was one of the reasons why I left: Lack of girls_

"Just until she gets comfortable with her surroundings" Kuna assured.

Gyatso's smile went stiff.

In all honesty, he kind of forgot the situation with the genders, being how the Southern Air Temple only housed boys. His grand-niece was required to either stay at the Eastern or Western Air Temple; his nephew was persistent in keeping her under his quarters, emphasized by his repetitive orders.

This was not going to sit well with the council.

Nevertheless he'll handle the problem when it comes. He took pride in his pro-airbending skills

_And_ his skills to coax people as well.

* * *

The fading form of her parents on the sky bison—which she later found out her name was Kama. She was deemed as the personal carrier for Hake and Kuna whenever they wanted to visit—refilled the sorrow in her void. Now as she stood next to Gyatso, the kind old man rubbing the woes that occupied her shoulders, she gazed at the sky.

Unknowingly a tear met the cobblestone ground.

* * *

**Sana lives with the Air Nomads now. She's sad now but she'll get over (especially when she meets a certain little airbender.) I like how I made the color of my protagonist's hair red. I feels its more exotic and I don't recall anyone having red hair in the series. Sana's image ironically derives from Kushina Uzumaki when she was in her academy days. (I'll draw a picture of Sana later on.) I've always liked Kushina's hairstyle from the academy days and also when she's in the adult stage. Inspiration! I have a picture of Hake and Kuna, but I don't know to post it on my profile. ( New User)**

**You'll later find out who Shen and Ozu is. If I continue with this story, I'll probably make a Hake Gaiden.**

**Hope you Enjoyed it**

**Review! I crave criticism**


	2. New Surroundings

**I'm sorry if it seems that I rushed through this chapter (because I kinda did) however I knew I had to establish some sort of setting for Sana's new home. It was my impatient manner that drove me to finish this because for some reason I while I was typing I kept regarding this as filler even though it does have some important aspects.**

**Disclaimer: Avatar the Last Airbender is Michael and Brian's toy. I'm just playing with it**

* * *

**_The Childhood Arc_**

_**Chapter 2: New Surroundings**_

(_**新的環境**__**)**_

It was a peculiar feeling to Sana, waking up with no idea of her location.

Maybe she had noticed a flaw in her bedroom. Her room had sunlight drifting in at any other angle than directly into her retinas; now she could feel a faint ray trying to pry open her eyelids. Maybe because her bed had a springy kick to it whenever she moved, unlike the one she laid on now. Or maybe a familiar maternal voice that usually told her to wake up didn't accompany the rise of the morning.

Regardless of the theories that swarmed her mind following the realization that she had no clue where she was, Sana knew she hardly wanted to go to the trouble of actually opening her eyes and finding out what was happening.

However, she heard a quiet distinctive masculine voice calling her name.

It couldn't be her father. The young blacksmith was the direct opposite of quiet neither was he a morning person neither did he even sound that _old_.

The redhead rose up, only to groan and press the heel of her hand to her eyes at the bout of dizziness that blindsided her. Once the serrated, multicolored flurries had finished their disorienting dance across her vision, Sana lowered her hand to survey her surroundings. Only now did she notice that the sheets stretched out over her tiny legs weren't the light gold of her bed at home. It was orange.

Just like the tiles in the Council Room

The orange fabric bunched up around her as she remembered yesterday. Holding her parents hands and walking into the Council Room, old men in robes, her meeting her grand-uncle, tears, crying, warm arms of both of her parents enveloping her and…sky bisons.

Lots and lots of sky bisons

Yet oddly enough Sana didn't remain on the latter that initially got her excited for the "trip." She wasn't in her room; she wasn't at home with her parents; she wasn't in Yu Dao anymore. The thoughts had racked her brain and she easily couldn't resist few of her tears from crashing down.

"_Don't worry sweetie. Your mom and I will come up and visit every week. You won't even notice we're gone"_

She did notice it; every living second. The outgoing and funny Hake and the calm and loving Kuna…

Almost against her will, she swung her legs to the side of the bed, leaving it there to dangle back and forth. The bed was a little bit too high for her small stature, she observed as she hopped off the bed. The floor felt cold and smooth as Sana grazed across it only to stop in the middle of the room and childishly grip her hair that was steadfast in being unruly in the morning. _That's why Mommy always brushes it for me._ Kuna would always tend to Sana's hair in the morning; the ticklish feel that she felt when her mother held her red threads and the brush would roam through it, humming a tune that would put the whole world at ease, at least to her. She didn't know how to brush her hair.

Of course they wouldn't have brushes or combs or anything here—not like she'll be able to use it—in the fact that every living person here is bald and a boy.

"Sana"

The old masculine voice called out once again. Sana stepped outside the room and wandered downstairs just to please the voice that has been calling for her. There she was greeted with a cheerful aura that radiated all over the room, from the sunlight that decorated the kitchen as if the room was made out of gold, the breakfast that sat on the table and the old man who was setting the final arrangements on the table. When he caught sight of her, he smiled such a huge smile that Sana wondered if he was related to her father.

Wait…he was.

"Good morning Sana" Gyatso greeted. "Good morning" She answered back, looking at the food. Muffins, pancakes, buns, scrambled eggs and fruits; it looked delicious. Gyatso returned to his spot at the table and offered a forkful of pale yellow scrambled eggs, one fluffy pancake, one muffin, one honey roasted bun and some fruits to her.

She walked around the table, took the plate and sat right next to him. Sana once again observed the food on her plate which merited an eyebrow raise from Gyatso. His eyes then softened when he spotted the frown set on her lips, the red veil of her bangs covering her eyes as she looked down, robotically forking the scrambled eggs as if it was going to attack anytime soon.

Unnatural was the word Gyatso thought suited. The little girl he met yesterday, who graced his presence with a jubilant attitude, seemed to have mysteriously swapped with a melancholic character. He felt remorseful, taking her from her regular life and throwing her into a new one; she had every right to be sad. She was only a child. "Is it not good?" He asked, reaching for an empty plate on the table and started to gather eggs on it. She opened her mouth to say something, but instead of completing the process, she shoved the eggs in her mouth. Chew. Chew. Chew. Swallow.

Sana almost fell out of her seat.

_YUMMY! SO YUMMY!_

Sana slurped up the eggs then tackled the pancake, easily gulping it down. She then shoveled the muffin down her throat with all the force of a dying man; the sight made Gyatso chuckle in amusement. "Is it that good?" He queried, putting more food on his plate. Sana looked up and grinned "It's really good Uncle Gyatso!" She declared. He smiled at that, taking a napkin and reaching over to dab a few crumbs that manage to settle at the corner of her mouth. "I had a feeling you might like it" The redhead blinked, moving away ever so slightly, though strands of her hair still swerved at the action. "Did Mommy and Daddy tell you that?" Gyatso laughed, a sound whose ready amicability thoroughly reminded Sana of Hake once more. "Oh, no, no" he went on. One hand rested on another, as if to stave off amusement. "I just know that I'm a really good cook"

Just like that, his laughter possessed a ripple effect that made Sana relent to her bubbling giggles, but soon it faded and she straightened up again. "Thanks." Sheepishness—she had no idea why she felt—emerged as a slight blush and gratitude took the form of a cheesy grin. A beat, then her hunger became too much for her and she added eagerly, "Can I have some more? Please?"

"Take as much as you want"

* * *

They actually do have mirrors

The small aside had echoed inwardly. Of course, the humor had tried to play as a distraction from what the mirror revealed. Residing on the positive side, Gyatso had helped Sana tame her hair. Finger-combing served as an optimal and a great use since her hair easily snapped back to its regular, straightened style. He even placed her bangs back to its standard left swipe; Sana couldn't help but compare his work to Kuna's prim proper way of doing it. It was then after she tidied herself up—the bathroom was surprisingly ordinary—Gyatso had formatted _clothes_ on the bed for her.

It was as if the sun threw up on her

Orange and yellow blinded her; it was nothing but that. A yellow cupped collar, attached to an orange skirt-like shawl, had a slit in the middle that concealed her neck, appearing as if she didn't have one. Her round face further emphasized that illusion she came to a dismal realization. Underneath the robe like shawl laid a dual yellow long sleeved shirt tied down by orange arm bands that she felt were rather needless. The arms itself swallowed both of her own; she could easily retreat her hands back inside the hole, all the way up to her elbows. An orange waistband wrapped around the shirt, puffing out the excess space and not only a yellow shirt but yellow pants to match; yellow pants that were capacious and overtook her feet.

"Uncle…" She examined herself once again with a disapproved frown. "What is this?" Gyatso turned to face the six year old who was glued to the sole mirror in the house. "It's clothes that all airbending children wear. It's also their main clothing for school" That implication did not go amiss shown by Sana's bewildered face and a quick whip of her head. "School!? Already!?" She cried incredulously, giving a tiny pout at the end. "Do not worry. School won't be until next week" Gyatso attempted to assuage.

Sana tore her gaze from her granduncle to her non-existent feet. She still thought that her going to school was kind of early and she wondered if she'll be able to adjust to the customs that her bloodline was true to. She was still holding onto the fact that she just came and since her airbending power had recently been discovered, she hypothesized that her skills were as good as a baby's skills, probably even worst. Of course Gyatso, perceptive by nature, deciphered the somberness that appeared on her face, vulnerable to the eye. He rested one hand on her shoulders, waiting for her to face him; when she did, a smile sculpted his face.

"Let's go outside"

With that Sana followed.

* * *

It was a simple command that Gyatso instructed her to do, yet that command drove her to question the concept of airbending. It was weird. She was just trotting absently along his side, the unconventional garb she wore trailing at her feet. Once they were outside, the old man turned to her and commanded her to do an action that probably was a leading cause of injuries to old people everywhere.

"Knock me down"

"What?"

"Knock me down with your airbending"

Her eyebrows got lost in the red sweep of her bangs as puzzlement overtook her. Her head tilted to the side at the bemusing command and for a minute she basked in a momentary pause, waiting for him to crack a smile and say he was kidding. However, the seriousness etched in his face tackled that thought. She didn't know what fact she was riding on; the fact that he was definitely way more experienced than her or the fact that he was an old man and indispensable knowledge imparted that old people were fragile beings.

An expression of nervousness had came and fleeted. She hated that feeling for some odd reason and purged that feeling every time she had to perform a technique of Taijiquan in front of her father. It was a feeling associated with weakness and she hated the latter feeling even more. She finally acquiesced seeing on how Gyasto was waiting for an attack.

With a whip of her arms, she felt the wind around her gather momentum, coiling around her arms. Unlike last time, she noticed; it really was her controlling it. It felt strange; it was nothing like watching someone do it. She couldn't help but smirk as the air continued to gather even more turbulence as she exaggeratedly raised her arms. The coolness of it had stunned her hands a little, but the way she felt…grand; it swelled. The smirk that grown from this faltered as realization hit her.

She had no idea how to direct it towards him

As if the slaughtering wind read her mind, it indignantly whipped faster until suddenly her foot lost gravity; knocking herself a few feet back. She found herself looking up at the cloudless sky. The grass sort of cushioned her fall but that didn't stop the throbbing her head undertook. She had to clear her vertigo just too functionally hear Gyatso's voice of concern. "Are you okay Sana?"

"I'm fine Uncle Gyatso" She grunted in response while rubbing her head. Helping her up gingerly, he spoke. "Let's continue this another time" Shaking the remnants of grass from her hair, she protested. "But I want to keep working on this! I want to knock you down!" Gyatso looked at her with a curious gaze. A second ago her face held the contemplation and the almost refusal of doing the task, yet now green eyes flickering with avid determination challenged coffee brown; Gyatso couldn't help but sigh. Why couldn't the air nomad boys here embody the same fervent spirit that his grandniece has?

His hand found a home on Sana's head, patting her gently. "Next time. Tomorrow we'll be going over the basics" He looked up towards the sky, mostly at the sun, spotting its location in its blue background. It was already noon. He had to go see the other elders before the day ended. Gyatso rubbed his temples that had suddenly started to ache at the aforementioned monks. Of course the playful side of him had wanted to spend a family day with Sana—it's what he originally planned—but the Council had beckoned him to discuss about the new addition to the air nomad population and there was still the living situation that had to be resolved.

…But they did say before the end of the day.

_It's still early noon._

Using that present fact, he smiled and took Sana's hand, engulfing it. "Come my young grandniece. Let's have a walk. I'll show you around the temple" An indignant pout transformed into a sweet smile.

"Alright!"

* * *

Though she only skimmed through the place yesterday with her parents, Sana thoroughly looked around and it was actually pretty normal. She was half-expecting the place to have inimitable buildings and bizarre customs amongst the people—well she could count their clothing—that would probably have weird her out. However, here, their economy was completely based off of agriculture and vegetation; Yu Dao was a mix of agriculture and industrialization, but it was mainly agricultural for the most part.

Gyatso took her to the mailing room where they would receive anything from the outside world, but that mostly regarded the mother temples, the Western and Eastern Air Temple. They didn't really trade with any other nations—they don't really bother trying—and usually only received supplies from the Western and Eastern Temple; from handmade garments to tools to food since it's pretty taxing to farm and nurture up on a mountain with its rigid climate.

The sky bisons occupied the job of shipment, transporting the bulky and hefty goods. People only sent letters to friends from other nations and instead of using a bird like normal human beings, they used flying lemurs or that's what Gyatso told her. She couldn't help but think that lemurs looked like monkeys gone wrong; a mutation, trying to turn into a bat or something. She had to admit those eccentric creatures were cute and she wondered if her mother and father would ever let her keep one.

"Uncle Gyatso…is that you?" Sana asked, eyes gliding over a punctilious statue anchored on a pedestal gracefully embedded into the ground. The frown-shaped whiskers she spotted were a giveaway. The statue glowed with a mild iridescent sheen reflecting off its bronze skin, making it look more ethereal. It sat cross-legged, the usual monk meditation pose. It was a job well done; each little feature that Gyatso had was replicated perfectly, Sana couldn't find one flaw. From his clothes—that he oddly had on right now—to his necklace that carried the air nomad insignia, to his face.

"Yes it is me" Gyatso answered back with slight mirth. He slowly angled himself to face the statue. "They built it for me because of my airbending skills."

"If they built you a statue that means you must be the greatest airbender in the world!"

And it was true. Gyatso has been deemed the greatest airbender alive; better than the wise Yangchen, better than his deceased brothers, better than everyone that inhabited the air temples. Of course, he was not the type of person to brag. Humbly, he ruffled her head. "Thank you for the compliment"

Sana continued her stare at the statue. Airbending was new to her, a new life; she's surrounded by it. Just staring at the statue of her granduncle put Sana in a haze; an imaginational visage. She replaced Gyato's head with her head, his body with her small one and with a quick shut of her eyes she saw herself in the meditation position looking wise, mighty, kind, humble. She reopened her eyes to reality, seeing the Gyatso clone staring right back at her. "Come Sana..." Gyatso called out to her, now noticing that she was lagging behind.

"Coming!" She responded.

It was just this morning that she had given up the spur to even stay here another minute, but now

She had found incentive

The desire to go home still held a strong grip, but Sana found herself surprisingly thinking that she can stay and endure this place.

* * *

"Nice to finally join us Gyatso" Tashi greeted charitably although squashed by the terse tone prevalent in his voice. Gyatso walked, unperturbed by the dryness of his unnecessary comment. He did the natural and ignored, occupying the space set for him at the circular table that equally spaced out each monk. The hems of his robe neatly folded behind him as he perfectly branched himself between Monk Pasang and Monk Gephel, the latter dipping his head to incite a greeting.

In the middle of the table sat a teapot, podgy and colorful, decorating the table slightly to diminish the dullness and next to it a stout cup that failed to meet the vividness of the teapot. Wavy steam tunneled its way through the teapot; it didn't take Gyatso long to pick up the cup and pour himself some. A delicate sip of green tea, then a curious gaze on why his fellowmen were so quiet.

Usually they would situate themselves then the focal topic of controversy would be buoyed, immediately rushing into the topic at hand. Now everyone was nonchalantly nipping at their tea just to leave room for idleness. Another sip; Gyatso closed his eyes, defogged his mind, and then reopened. Maybe he was delving too much into the silence of his brethren.

"About the little girl…" Someone had finally begun although it was a slight murmur. Resting his drink on the table, Gyatso spoke. "I spoke with my nephew. He wants her to stay here under my care and my care alone" His gaze lifted from empty space, sweeping his curious pupils across the others to gauge their reactions.

It was the least of what he expected

It was the sense of concurrency that quite frankly put Gyatso in the moment of shock; aloofness as well as he watched each man nonchalantly drinking their steaming tea. Even Tashi, whose cantankerous attitude Gyatso had a slight annoyance toward, remained dormant, his wrinkle creases relaxing as if he heard the most peaceful news.

"No objections?" Gyatso asked warily

"No its fine as long as she behaves herself and acts accordingly, but that was not I was talking about" Gephel answered registering a weak eyebrow raise from Gyatso. "You all felt it too, right?"

_Oh…that_

The silence that followed afterwards had affirmed it and the blasé atmosphere that insulated the air had morphed into a serious one. With the high spirituality that was the foundation of airbending, it wasn't hard to sense it. Gyatso felt it every time his grand-niece simply walked into the room and when he touched her, it intensified.

"Her chi energy is extremely high for a child. Her amount is equivalent to an adult man" Monk Norbu explained, his eyes half-lidded and voice brusque. The room was reduced to still quietness yet again. It was radiant and innocent, Sana's energy. It wasn't anything bad; it was just astonishing o the extent that fitted into one small body. It was the reason why the force of her airbending was so potent; it completely caught Gyatso off guard when the wind lashed around her. The sheer might of it; if she knew what she was doing she would've knocked him back a few feet.

"The best we can do right now is to monitor her closely" Tashi briefly said and a miff feeling rose in Gyatso on how Tashi regarded Sana as if she was some experiment, though formidably he was right in every sense.

"Alright meeting adjourned" Monk Gephel announced as they all stood up. "May the spirits be with thee"

"May the spirits be with thee" Their voices became one in prayer and soon after they parted ways.

* * *

**Review please! I crave your responses**


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